“Everything” Sweet Potato Flatbreads Recipe

This is originally inspired by a reader named Jo, who commented on my 40 Ways to Cook Sweet Potatoes post, saying that she made such flatbreads and sold them from her market stand along with other breads. Such a simple, brilliant idea stuck in my head, and I vowed to try it soon.

Making grain-free sweet potato flatbreads

Jo generously explained that she makes her sweet potato flatbreads with a 1:1 mix of puréed sweet potatoes and all-purpose flour, but for both color and flavor, I decided to lean more heavily on the sweet potato and used a 2:1 ratio instead.

I also chose to make my sweet potato flatbreads with cassava flour (farine de manioc in French), which I’ve been experimenting with lately. Cassava is the tuberous root from which tapioca starch is extracted, and it is ground into a grain-free (by definition), gluten-free, paleo-friendly* flour that is quite extraordinary: it is a much better binder than other gluten-free flours, and it yields beautifully pliable flatbreads or tortillas.

Want to see just how pliable?

Cassava flour is a staple ingredient in many tropical countries, so you’re likely to find it in Latin American, African, or Asian markets. And because it is becoming a hot ingredient in the Western world, you can also buy it at natural foods stores or online. However, if you can’t (or don’t want to) find it, just use all-purpose flour or your favorite all-purpose gluten-free flour mix.

To shape the flatbreads, I used the tortilla press I got an embarrassingly long time ago, and only started using recently — but intensively so. It is one of those heavy, traditional cast-iron presses that seem pretty basic, but work quite well and are very fun to use. The common trick to using a tortilla press is to place the ball of dough between two layers of a split-open freezer bag, so the dough doesn’t stick to the press irretrievably. (One has to wonder how people pressed tortillas before the advent of the freezer bag.)

In the mile-long list of cooking ideas that I keep (along with a gajillion other tasks and projects) in Wunderlist, I had also noted that I wanted to create a recipe that would have an “everything” topping on it. This was most recently reinforced by a photo of an everything croissant from Neighbor Bakehouse in San Francisco, spotted on my friend David’s Instagram.

What’s in the “everything” spice mix?

I’ve always been a big fan of the “everything” bagel topping typically offered in New York-style bagel shops. Maybe not for breakfast (hello, garlic breath before 10!), but at lunchtime? Yes!

I have on occasion recreated it at home to garnish my homemade sourdough bagels, but David’s photo made me want to branch out and use it again in a non-bagel recipe. These sweet potato flatbreads seemed the perfect canvas (and I could check two ideas off my list).

The classic “everything” seasoning mix contains poppy seeds, sesame seeds, dried garlic flakes, dried onion flakes, and salt. (Some people add caraway seeds to theirs, but it’s controversial and I find it a bit overpowering; I’ll let you decide whether to add it to your own rendition.) And it couldn’t be easier to make: just measure and mix!

Consider making double the recipe for the “everything” seasoning and keeping the extra in a little spice jar for your next batch of olive oil crackers, or simply to add oomph to your salads and season a tray of roasted vegetables.

My sweet potato flatbreads in action

Once the sweet potato flatbreads are shaped and seasoned, it’s just a matter of cooking them in a dry skillet (this is the one I love), a minute or so on each side, and stacking them on a covered plate to keep nice and warm until ready to serve.

And they are just. so. good. Lightly crisp at the edges, but tender and chewy when you bite in, they offer subtle notes of caramelized sweet potato, and a good structure that bends and folds around whatever filling you choose for them.

We’ve eaten them like we would corn tortillas, taco-style, with avocado, crunchy raw vegetables, herbs, and salsa. And we’ve also used them as a side to a fried egg, a soup, a vegetable stew, or my easy fish curry. All delicious.

Want more amazing sweet potato recipes?

This post is sponsored by the American Sweet Potato Marketing Institute; visit their website for more information and recipes to use the delicious sweet potato! All words and opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the organizations who support Chocolate & Zucchini.

* If you’re following a paleo diet to control blood sugar issues, keep in mind that cassava flour has a pretty high glycemic load, so it may not be an ideal fit for you.

Place in a saucepan, cover with cold water, and bring to a simmer. Cook for 15 minutes, or until soft when tested with the tip of a knife.

Drain over a bowl, saving the cooking water.

Mash the sweet potatoes finely with a potato masher or ricer (a fork will do in a pinch). Transfer to a mixing bowl and allow to cool slightly.

Add in the flour and combine with a fork.

Stir in 120 ml (1/2 cup) of the cooking water to start, then add some more, little by little, until the dough comes together. (A dough whisk is perfect for this.) The exact amount will depend on your sweet potatoes and your flour.

Turn the dough out on a clean work surface and knead it briefly to form a smooth ball.

Divide into 12 even pieces, each about 70 grams (2 1/2 ounces), roll the pieces into balls, and arrange on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

Combine all the ingredients for the everything seasoning mix in a small bowl.

Cut a large freezer bag on two sides so it opens like a book. Place a ball of dough in the middle and slip the whole thing inside a tortilla press. (If you don't have a tortilla press, I won't fault you; just use a flat-bottomed plate or rolling pin)

Press gently to spread the dough out halfway, and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of the everything mix.

Press again all the way down. I like the flatbreads not to be too thin, so I don't press the lever down fully, but it's a matter of preference: try different thicknesses to see what you prefer.

Heat a dry skillet over medium-high heat.

Carefully peel off the top layer of freezer bag from the flatbread. Flip the exposed flatbread onto your open palm, carefully peel off the second layer of freezer bag, then slide the flatbread gently into the skillet.

Allow to cook for 1 minute, until the edges start to dry up.

Flip and cook for 1 minute on the other side, until nicely browned.

While one flatbread is cooking, press and season the next so you can cook them one after the other.

Stack the cooked flatbreads on a plate as you go, and cover with a clean kitchen towel to keep warm.

75/25 would mean that I use three times more sweet potatoes than flour. Here, I use twice more sweet potatoes than flour, hence 100/50.

Argol

Not to belabor this, you can only have 100%. I presumed the original 50-50 amounts were equal to 750gms or 375gms of each, and that you had increased the sweet potato to 500gms and reduced the flour to 250gms. But Jo used 500gms of each and you reduced the flour by half, so the ratio is 66.6-33.3, or 2 parts potato and 1 part flour

You know, I haven’t tried freezing them, but I’m sure they would do well, like bread does. In the fridge, they will keep for two days.

Annabel Smyth

I don’t have a tortilla press – have you any recommendations as to how to flatten them without one? Rolling pin?

P.S. I regret to say your English (or perhaps your maths) has let you down, for once – you can’t have 100:50 as “100” is totality in an expression like 50:50. You want a ratio of 2/3:1/3, something like that (it’s a pain in decimal because thirds don’t translate well).

In the recipe I include the option to use a flat-bottomed plate or a rolling pin. The tortilla press makes it a bit easier because the lever means you don’t have to apply very much force to it, but I recognize not everyone will want to buy a press.

As for the maths thing, see my response to Argol below — in short, I switched the original 1:1 ratio to a 2:1 ratio.

Annabel Smyth

Thanks. I do agree you switched it to a 2:1 ratio, but then that’s what you should say, as 100/50 means 150%….

100/50 is actually a fraction that is equivalent to 200% (or 200/100). But we can just agree to disagree on this one. :)

Annabel Smyth

We all know what you mean, anyway, and that is the important thing!

NotJoking

Living in an African country for many years without many things we in the west take for granted, we became mothers of invention. As tortilla presses were not available, we used to sprinkle a little flour on a wooden cutting board, place the ball of dough on it, then sprinkle some more flour on another wooden cutting board and place it on top of the ball of dough. It was important to place as much pressure as possible on the top board, this was my husband’s job as he could place a lot more pressure per square inch than I could. Then I carefully lifted off the top board and prettied up the edges of the tortilla. There were very few failures but I have a confession to make. I did not invent this method but lifted it from Elena’s Secrets of Mexican Cooking!

I made these last night with masa harina in place of the cassava flour: best tortillas I’ve ever made! They usually end up crumbly and stiff, but the sweet potatoes (I used the same 2:1 proportions above, but didn’t find I needed any water. Maybe my potatoes were a bit on the mushy side) gave it a a great texture, perfect for fajitas. Pretty sure this is how I will make tortillas from now on. Also, the cutting board trick below works great. I finished each off with a rolling pin, just to get them a little thinner, but I always had trouble forming them properly with the rolling pin alone.

Oh, I’m so glad, thank you so much for reporting back! Of course it’s a great idea to use masa harina, and I will try that next time for sure. Re: the amount of water, I think it has more to do with the flour than the sweet potatoes: cassava flour seems to have a pretty high absorbency, certainly higher than corn flour.

Clinton Davidson

In place of a tortilla press, try saran wrap on the bottom, dough in the middle, and saran wrap on top. Then just roll it into a circle (turning as needed) with a rolling pin.

Thanks for the tip! I use a freezer bag rather than saran wrap as I find it is more sturdy, but it’s the same idea.

Anna

Yesterday, I and my mother try processing this dish. Wow! although this is the first, it is pretty delicious. I want to share with you. And Please! Share with me if you have new post! http://healthoop.com/

Beck @ Golden Pudding

I just made these using a cast iron pan to press them flat and it worked perfectly – I used tapioca flour which I think is the same as cassava, and it gives them quite an interesting texture, almost more like a dumpling wrapper made from rice flour than a tortilla, but very tasty!

Hi Clotilde, None (!) of the bio stores in all of Marseille carry cassava flour! ugh! Amazon does not sell the celnat bio one. Any idea of one could make their own flour from a manioc itself (which I actually CAN buy in Noailles) OR have any suggestions for other online sellers? Thanks!

Aggghh, so frustrating! I chanced upon it myself at an organic store in Nogent-le-Rotrou and stocked up. :) I have no idea how to make it from scratch, but Google can probably help with that particular adventure. Perhaps you can get in touch with Celnat and ask about local stores that might stock it? I’ve interacted with them in the past and they were pretty responsive.

Susan

for a variation in flavor, try some panch puran seed mix from the Indian grocery. I make crackers with it and some sesame, poppy, and sunflower seeds; they’re quite tasty.

About Clotilde

Clotilde Dusoulier is a French food writer based in Paris. Her focus is on fresh, colorful, and seasonal foods, making room for both wholesome, nourishing dishes and sweet treats.

An enthusiastic explorer of flavors and observer of culinary trends, she leads private walking tours in Paris, contributes to international food and travel magazines, and writes cookbooks and guidebooks. She lives in Montmartre with her husband and their two little boys. Learn more »